9 Things Not to Say To Someone With a Mental Illness

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anxiety-1Awhile back I wrote a piece on what not to say to a depressed person. Blogger Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S., adds a few more to the list from mental health experts and writers in her new Psych Central piece, “9 Things Not to Say to Someone With a Mental Illness.”

She begins …

Julie Fast’s friend went to the hospital for a terrible colitis attack. “It was so serious they sent her straight to the ER.” After reviewing her medical records and seeing that her friend was taking an antidepressant, the intake nurse said, “Maybe this is all in your head.”

When it comes to mental illness, people say the darnedest things. As illustrated above, even medical staff can make incredibly insensitive and downright despicable remarks.

Others think teasing is okay.

Fast, a coach who works with partners and families of people with bipolar disorder, has heard stories of people getting teased at work. One client’s son works at the vegetable department of a grocery store. He has obsessive-compulsive disorder and poor social skills. When his symptoms flare up, his coworkers will ask questions like, “Why do the labels have to be so perfect? Why do they have to be in line like that?” They’ve also teased him about being in a psychiatric facility.

But most people — hopefully — know that being an outright jerk to someone about their mental illness isn’t just inappropriate and ignorant. It’s cruel.

Continue reading …

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Therese Borchard
I am a writer and chaplain trying to live a simple life in Annapolis, Maryland.

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